PHYSIOLOGIA PLANTARUM 111: 55–65. 2001 Copyright © Physiologia Plantarum 2001 Printed in Ireland—all rights reser6ed ISSN 0031-9317 Cold resistance in Antarctic angiosperms Leo´n A. Bravoa,*, Nancy Ulloab, Gustavo E. Zun˜igac, Ange´lica Casanovab, Luis J. Corcueraa and Miren Alberdib aDepartamento de Bota´nica, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanogra´ficas, Uni6ersidad de Concepcio´n, Casilla 160-C, Concepcio´n, Chile bInstituto de Bota´nica, Facultad de Ciencias, Uni6ersidad Austral de Chile, Valdi6ia, Chile cDepartamento de Biologı´a, Facultad de Quı´mica y Biologı´a, Uni6ersidad de Santiago, Santiago, Chile *Corresponding author, e-mail: [email protected] Received 29 September 1999; revised 30 May 2000; in final form 2 August 2000 Deschampsia antarctica Desv. (Poaceae) and Colobanthus tion conditions was studied. During the cold-acclimation treat- quitensis (Kunth) Bartl. (Cariophyllaceae) are the only two ment, the LT50 was lowered more effectively under long day vascular plants that have colonized the Maritime Antarctic. (21/3 h light/dark) and medium day (16/8) light periods than The primary purpose of the present work was to determine under a short day period (8/16). The longer the day length cold resistance mechanisms in these two Antarctic plants. This treatment, the faster the growth rate for both acclimated and was achieved by comparing thermal properties of leaves and non-acclimated plants. Similarly, the longer the day treatment the lethal freezing temperature to 50% of the tissue (LT50). during cold acclimation, the higher the sucrose content (up to The grass D. antarctica was able to tolerate freezing to a 7-fold with respect to non-acclimated control values). Oligo lower temperature than C. quitensis. The main freezing resis- and polyfructans accumulated significantly during cold accli- tance mechanism for C. quitensis is supercooling. Thus, the mation only with the medium day length treatment. Oligofruc- grass is mainly a freezing-tolerant species, while C. quitensis tans accounted for more than 80% of total fructans. The avoids freezing. D. antarctica cold acclimated by reducing degrees of polymerization were mostly between 3 and 10. C. its LT50. C. quitensis showed little cold-acclimation capacity. quitensis under cold acclimation accumulated a similar Because day length is highly variable in the Antarctic, the amount of sucrose than D. antarctica, but no fructans were effect of day length on freezing tolerance, growth, various detected. The suggestion that survival of Antarctic plants in soluble carbohydrates, starch, and proline contents in leaves of the Antarctic could be at least partially explained by accumu- D. antarctica growing in the laboratory under cold-acclima- lation of these substances is discussed. Introduction Freezing-resistant plants may either avoid ice formation in Squeo et al. 1991). They suggested that a combination of the tissues (avoidance) or tolerate the various strains exerted freezing tolerance and avoidance by insulation is less expen- by extracellular ice formation (tolerance) (Levitt 1980, Al- sive and a more secure mechanism than supercooling alone. berdi and Corcuera 1991). Supercooling is a frequent avoid- The maximum freezing tolerance of plants is usually ance mechanism against freezing injury in plants from induced in response to low, non-freezing temperatures (be- regions where frost occurs during periods of high metabolic low approximately 10°C). This phenomenon is known as and developmental activity (Levitt 1980, Sakai and Larcher cold acclimation or cold hardening (Levitt 1980, Alberdi 1987). Freezing tolerance is usually observed in tropical and Corcuera 1991). Freezing tolerance is a result of several environments at high altitude, where sub-zero temperatures cryoprotective mechanisms operating concurrently (Sakai may occur any night of the year or in zones with a seasonal and Larcher 1987). Because compatible solutes accumulate climate (Alberdi et al. 1985, Larcher 1995). In high tropical during cold acclimation, it is thought that this accumulation Andean habitats, ground-level plants showed freezing toler- is a cryoprotective mechanism in some plants (Alberdi and ance, while arborescent forms showed supercooling as the Corcuera 1991, Livingston 1996). Soluble carbohydrates and main mechanism of cold resistance (Goldstein et al. 1985, free proline may be involved in freezing point depression of 6 Abbre iations – DP, degree of polymerization; LD, long day; LT50, lethal temperature to 50% of the tissue; MD, medium day; SD, short day; SPS, sucrose phosphate synthase. Physiol. Plant. 111, 2001 55 cell sap, prevention of plasmolysis during cell dehydration sucrose and fructans are found mainly towards the end of caused by freezing, and protein and lipid stabilization summer under field conditions (Zu´n˜iga et al. 1996). This is (Strauss and Hauser 1986, Livingston et al. 1989, Santarius consistent with the findings that D. antarctica and C. quiten- 1992). Proline accumulates in a variety of plants subjected sis have relatively high net photosynthetic rates on cool days to cold and its content has been correlated with frost (Xiong et al. 1999). At 0°C, these plants maintain about tolerance (Alberdi et al. 1993, Do¨rffling et al. 1997, Bravo et 30% of the photosynthetic rate found at the optimum al. 1998, Wanner and Junttila 1999). Fructans (polyfructo- temperature (Edwards and Lewis-Smith 1988). The purpose sylsucrose) have been described as storage sugars in vegeta- of the present work was to determine freezing tolerance and tive tissues of several plant groups (Nelson and Spollen the supercooling capacities of these two Antarctic plants. In 1987). Their physiological role is not completely understood, addition, we hypothesized that day length during cold accli- although, there is evidence that fructan’s role is not merely mation influences the accumulation of non-structural carbo- storage (for review see Vijn and Smeekens 1999). Several hydrates (soluble sugars and fructans) and proline, and reports correlated cold acclimation with an increase in fruc- therefore, freezing resistance in both plants. tan contents (Santoiani et al. 1993, Puebla et al. 1997, Koroleva et al. 1998) and also with depolymerization of polyfructans (fructo-polysaccharides) into oligofructans Materials and methods (fructo-oligosaccharides) (Pontis 1989, Suzuki 1989, Liv- Plant material and growth conditions ingston 1991). It is difficult, however, to establish a direct correlation between stress and fructan accumulation (Vijn Deschampsia antarctica Desv. (Poaceae) was collected on the and Smeekens 1999). High irradiance and low temperatures Coppermine Peninsula on Robert Island, Maritime Antarc- favor accumulation of fructans (Nelson and Spollen 1987). tic (62°22%S; 59°43%W) and Colobanthus quitensis (Kunth) Long days (LDs) have been reported to favor accumulation Bartl. (Cariophyllaceae) was collected on King George Is- of fructans (Hendry 1987), but this accumulation was prob- land, Maritime Antarctic (62°14%S; 58°48%W). A description ably caused by increased total irradiance in LDs (Solhaug of the environmental conditions of the habitat has been 1991). Fructan synthesis under cold and water stress was published elsewhere (Zu´n˜iga et al. 1996). Plants of both compared in two Bromus species adapted to different cli- species were transported in plastic bags to the laboratory. matic conditions (Puebla et al. 1997). It was found that Plants were reproduced vegetatively in plastic pots, using a species adapted to a cold desert climate exhibited constitu- soil:peat mixture (2:1) and maintained at 13–15°C in a tive fructan synthesis, whereas species adapted to a warmer growth chamber (Forma Scientific. Inc., Marietta, OH, climate produced fructans only under cold stress. There is USA) with a photon flux density of 180 mmol m−2 s−1 at no evidence of direct involvement of fructans in cryoprotec- the top of canopy and 16/8 h light/dark period. The light tion. However, they have a well-established osmotic activity, source consisted of cool-white fluorescent tubes F40CW which could indicate a possible function as volume regula- (General Electric, Charlotte, NC, USA). Plants were fertil- tors of vacuoles (Pontis 1989). Further research is necessary ized with Phostrogen® (Solaris, Buckinghamshire, UK) us- to clarify if fructans are involved in cold resistance. ing 0.12 g l−1 once every 2 weeks. The cold-acclimation Freezing tolerance seems to be improved by short days treatment consisted of transferring plants described above to (SDs) and low temperature in some woody plants (Levitt other growth chambers set at 4°C with the same light 1980). In pine seedlings, even at warm temperature, SDs intensity and 3 different day lengths for D. antarctica (8/16 induced higher frost resistance. In other plants, SDs alone h=SD, 16/8h=medium day [MD], and 21/3 h light/ are ineffective; a combination of SDs and low temperature is dark=LD). Radiation integrals were 5.2, 10.4, and 13.6 necessary to result in hardening in these plants (Sakai and mol m−2 day−1 for the SD, MD, and LD treatments, Larcher 1987, Larcher 1995). In winter cereals, the day respectively. Because of lack of sufficient material, only MD length seems to be only of secondary importance, if at all treatment was used for C. quitensis. Samples were taken at (Sakai and Larcher 1987). Low temperatures and SDs ap- different times of cold acclimation from the MD photope- peared to increase tolerance via an increase in carbohydrate riod for determination of freezing